Rohit Gurunath Sharma; the prolific opening batsman of India recently celebrated his 33rd birthday. The ‘Hitman’ without a shadow of a doubt is one of the leading batsmen in the world. The elegant right-handed batsman is known for cumulating big runs in all formats of the game and has accumulated some massive records. While many are known to his fans; there are a few unknown facts about Rohit Sharma.
His unique ability to clear the boundary at will makes him a lethal force in the world of cricket today. When he bats, the world watches and admires the quality of batsmanship that he possesses. His captaincy skills are also much talked about as he has now become the most IPL captain in history. Rohit has a sharp cricketing mind that rallies his troop beautiful when he leads his side.
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His ability to understand game situations better than many captains makes him a great leader. Rohit has always been blessed with all the talent in the world and now for a good 7-8 years, he has showcased it at the biggest of the stage all around the globe.
Here are some of the most unknown facts about Rohit Sharma, who is arguably the cleanest hitter of the cricket ball at present:
10. Only India to score a 100 and pick a hattrick in the IPL
Indian Premier League has played a very key role in the development of Rohit Sharma. When he got the opportunity to rub shoulders with legends such as Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting he never looked back. He not only has the most IPL titles in history with 5 but is also the only India to score a ton and pick a hattrick.
The capable off-spinner in 2009 in the IPL picked a bowling hattrick against Mumbai Indians. Rohit smashed his only IPL ton against KKR in 2012 when he scored 109* and helped his side to a victory at Eden Gardens.
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9. Most 150s in ODI cricket
As soon as he started opening the batting for India in 2013 he has made a habit of making daddy hundreds. He has now made 8 scores of 150 or more in ODI cricket. Once he gets set he ultimately makes it count and unleashes his vast array of shots.
His scores of 150 or more in ODIs are 264, 209,208* 171*, 162, 159, 152* and 150.
8. La Liga ambassador of India
In 2019, the popular football league of Spain La Liga signed Rohit Sharma as the brand ambassador for their league in India. Rohit who has always been a big Real Madrid fan was extremely delighted to be associated with the league. He since then has been invited to see several big matches of La Liga including the ‘El Classico’.
Rohit has always kept his fans updated by posting photos and videos whenever he has got the chance to see a football match live.
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7. Second Indian to score a 100 in World Cup in a knockout match
Rohit Sharma proved to the world that he is a big match player when he scores a 100 against Bangladesh in the Quarter Final of 2015 World Cup. He became only the second Indian after Sourav Ganguly to score a 100 in a Knockout match in the World Cup.
The Hitman scored a brilliant 137 in the match at Melbourne Cricket Ground and helped India reach the semis of the World Cup.
6. ODI Cricketer of the year 2019
The current No. 2 batsman in the ICC ODI Ranking, Rohit was awarded the ICC ODI cricketer of the year in 2019. Rohit was outstanding throughout the World Cup in 2019 as he scored the most runs along with 5 hundred. He overall smashed 1490 runs at an average of 57.30 with 7 100s.
He is the only cricketer to score 5 centuries in a single World Cup edition.
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5. Arjuna Award Winner
Rohit Sharma was awarded the prestigious Arjuna Award in 2015. He was acknowledged for his outstanding contribution to the game of cricket. The cricketer was given a statuette, a certificate, ceremonial dress and award money Rs. 5 lakh.
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4. The only player to hit 10 or more sixes in a match in all formats
Rohit Sharma is known for hitting sixes effortlessly in all formats of the game. He is the only cricketer in the world to hit 10 sixes or more in a single match in all 3 formats. His ability to sixes has earned him the nickname of ‘Hitman’.
Throughout his career, he has hit several deliveries into the stands and is the 4th batsman with most sixes in ODIs. His 244 sixes in ODI is also the most by an India and he is only behind Shahid Afridi, Chris Gayle and Sanath Jayasuriya.
3. How Rohit met his wife Ritika?
Rohit Sharma married Ritika Sajdeh on December 13, 2015. Ritika who is a sports event manager used to meet Rohit as a professional and also managed his cricket engagements. Their friendship turned into love and the two started dating each other.
The two got engaged in 2015 and then decided to marry each other after 2 years. The couple is now blessed with a baby girl whom they have named Samira.
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2. Only player to hit 3 double hundreds in ODI
Rohit Sharma is the only player to hit 4 double centuries in ODI cricket. The opening batsman struck his first double century against Australia at Bengaluru and made 209. He then struck gold the following year as he scored 264 which is the highest ODI score by a batsman against Sri Lanka in Kolkata.
The last of his 3 double tons came in 2017 when he made 208* at Mohali once more against Sri Lanka.
1. Best average by an Indian on home soil in Tests
Rohit Sharma has also made a mark in Test cricket. He has been in sensational form on home soil and averages a mind-boggling 88.33. This is the best average by an Indian in India in Test Matches. As far as his overall record is concerned in 20 innings he has scored 1325 runs with 6 hundred and 5 fifties.
He takes his batting to another level and loves batting on home soil in whites. All his hundreds in Test cricket has been scored in India itself including his highest score against South Africa 212 in 2019.